Armored Core For Answer: The Mercenary's Legacy
by RaidenSilversword
Summary: Set right before the final Collard Mission at Arteria Cranium, this story looks back on the early life and the career of the protagonist before and during the game. Slight AU and assumptuous grounds. M for language Later chapters and violence.
1. Chapter 1

Armored Core For Answer: The Mercenary's Legacy

Hey folks, it's me... Back with a new story, and not one on my ideas list too! O-o **Shock horror**...

Okay, here's the usual stuff, theme song and disclaimer and all that... Oh, and watch for language too.

Chapter Theme Song: /watch?v=V84STSWVp3g (Amazing Grace - Bagpipes)

Disclaimer: I don't pretend to own Armored Core, but I wish I did... It'd save me typing out a disclaimer, you know?

* * *

**Chapter One: The Beginning of the End of the Life of Old**

From hazy shadows, the figure spoke to the camera set up in front of them... The voice was soft and female, but had a weary edge to it, like the speaker had grown tired of something...

"It all started at Exavil... Reyleonard's Headquarters in Canada... Anatolia's Mercenary had taken up the task of obliterating the rising company alone, while Joshua O'Brian, the mercenary's friend and rival, took down Akvavit. Exavil was the beginning of the end for me, an ending of my life and the rebirth into a new world. This is my tale, the tale of a Collard Mercenary who stands ready to go and die at Arteria Cranium along with Wynn D. Fanchon, my friend and ally, and how it all started for me..."

(Recording Begins...)

**DEETDEETDEETDEETDEETDEETDEET!!!**

The early-warning alarm blazed out, alerting all the staff and visitors at Exavil that trouble was on the way. Hurriedly, defence forces were mobilised and all none-staff were moved to the cafeteria in preparation for the coming attack. In the middle of the group, a six-year old girl huddled with her parents and friends. From there, the group could hear the muttered rumours that others by the doors had heard and passed on.

"They say it's Anatolia's Lynx, the pilot of the NEXT "Howling Moon"!"

"That's crazy! Doesn't that pilot use a Reyleonard 03-Aaliyah? Why are they attacking the company that made their NEXT?!?"

"I heard Aspina's guy, O'Brian is headed after Akvavit now, so maybe those two are trying to bring down two companies and create an ending to the war."

"Don't be stupid, it couldn't be Anatolia's Lynx or Aspina's White Glint. It must be copycats trying to use those two's machines to discredit them."

Rumours like that were abundant, some saying the truth; It was in fact Anatolia's Lynx, Conrad Burns. The man who broke the Queen's Lance in two, taking down The Bernard and Felix Foundation and triggering the war... The Lynx kills he had were staggering... Sherring and his NEXT, Critique, Mary Shelly and Prometheus, Anjou and Orleans, Zanni and Roughcut, P. Dam and Hilarios, Unseel and Redcap, Sahdana and Attman... Not even Berloiz and Supplice, the number one Lynx was a match for the Lynx... Rumour had it, that Noblesse Oblige and Null, Leonhardt and Mido Auriel, had gone down against Berloiz' squad mere days before... And that Conrad had come in just after wards and taken down Zanni, Unseel, P. Dam, Sahdana and Berloiz in one fell swoop...The Numbers one, two, twelve, fifteen and twenty-one ranked Lynx in one go. Before then, it had been unthinkable, but now? It was thought of and carried out... And now, Conrad was headed to Exavil to finish off the company.

Looking up to her parents, the little girl looked close to tears, her long, brown fringe not even helping to cover that fact...

"I'm scared mama... Papa... What's going to happen to us?"

"Hush now Rose... It'll be alright, I promise..."

Nodding at her father, the girl, Rose still looked worried and scared. As the seconds ticked off and the approaching Lynx grew nearer, the soldiers outside the room grew more agitated as more orders came in.

"You want us to do what?!? But sir, that's unethical and dirty! Yes... But, sir... Yes... I understand... As you order, sir..."

Sighing, the soldiers entered the room. Spotting what they were ordered to use in the middle of the room, the men walked with heavy hearts to Rose, her parents and her friends.

"We need you to come with us please."

The anonymous full-face helmets the soldiers wore made it impossible for Rose to see their expressions, which was lucky, because it was only the first step... As the group left the room, the soldiers escorted them towards one of the roof exits. Holding onto her mother's hand with one hand, the little girl with the long brown hair tugged on one of the soldier's legs with her free hand.

"Excuse me mister... Where are we going?"

"..."

The soldier had no answer for that, he couldn't bring himself to tell the little girl the truth of the matter. As they emerged onto the roof, several other soldiers quickly restrained the civilians except for Rose, who was grabbed by two others.

"Mama! Papa!"

It was quick, the soldiers separated the girl from her parent's sight and kept hold of her.

"Miss, I'm sorry, but these are orders from the company's CEO..."

The soldier's following words were drowned out by the roar of thrusters and an explosion at one of the pillars that held up Exavil's roof... Conrad Burns had arrived... Immediately, external speaks and a large view screen crackled into life. From the speakers came the voice of Reyleonard's CEO, but the screen didn't show Chairman Rayleonard IV, it showed Rose and the other hostages...

_**"Attention Anatolia Lynx. Retreat from Exavil now, or these hostages will die. There are also over two hundred others in the building that can be executed if you continue this attack... And just to keep things interesting –"**_

At this point, the camera focused on the terrified face of Rose...

_**"- This little girl will be doing the killing, however unwillingly. This will be your only warning, ignore it at your peril."**_

The CEO's voiced then vanished in another haze of static, but the screen remained on... And naturally, to Conrad, the mission came first... Locking onto the Pillars, he unleashed hell with the 07-Moonlight laser blade he had taken from Anjou after he had beaten her...

When half of the pillars were gone, and the large, fang-like roof of Exavil shuddered under its weight below the hostages, one of the soldiers forced a gun into Rose's grip and held it there, breaking two of the girl's fingers and most of her hand in the process with his rough treatment. Dragging her forwards to face her friends and family, the man, the only one who was deriving pleasure from the orders, forced her to pull the trigger. The gun's report was loud enough to scare Rose almost as much as the sight of her best friend falling backwards with blood spraying out from her forehead.

"That's one down, four other little piggies to go, little girl..."

The voice of the brown-haired girl was lost in the sound of sobs and the sound of another explosion from a pillar... That meant another one of the hostages had to die... The man yanked Rose around to face another of her friends, and one again forced her finger to pull the trigger... Another strangled sob from Rose, as a second friend pitched backwards off the roof... Then one more explosion... And one more friend... That left Rose and her parents on the roof with the soldiers... A sudden explosion totalled all but one pillar, which meant one thing...

"Say goodbye to mommy and daddy now, little girl..."

Futilely, Rose struggled to free her hand from the man's grip, but failed as the man's fingers squeezed her own round the trigger twice more, killing her parents.

"And that leaves one little girl..."

Callously throwing her to the floor, the man stood over the terrified and shell-shocked little girl. Laughing psychotically as the last pillar was destroyed, the man kicked the girl from the roof and shot her three times as she fell; Once in the right lung, liver and stomach... Right before the collapsing roof fell from under him and he fell to his own death...

"Ma...ma... Pa...pa... Mich...elle... Amy... Hay...ley... Char...lotte..."

With her ruined hand held outstretched in front of her, Rose watched Exavil fall as she plummeted towards the ground and certain death below... That was, if the bleeding didn't kill her first... Thankfully, it was neither, and instead of solid ground or water, she landed in a metal hand; The hand of the NEXT "Howling Moon"... As if in penitence for not being able to save any of the other hostages, due to his need to complete the mission, Conrad had caught the girl as she fell.

As consciousness finally faded from Rose's mind, Conrad had set the NEXT on the ground, and left the Armored Core along with a medical kit. Performing emergency triage to bind the pitiful-looking girl's bullet wounds and stabilize her enough to get her Anatolia, Conrad headed off again, this time, with Rose resting on his lap...

* * *

End of Chapter One. Find out what happens to Rose in the next chapter of ACFA: TML.

Please Read and Review. Critique about my writing style is not appreciated, so please don't do it. Pointing out things I could have done better is okay, but please note this; Chapter Two will bring the Howling Moon and Conrad Burns into more detail. That is all.


	2. The Life of Old Finally Dies

Armored Core For Answer: The Mercenary's Legacy

Hey folks, it's me... Back with a new story, and not one on my ideas list too! O-o **Shock horror**...

Okay, here's the usual stuff, theme song and disclaimer and all that... Oh, and watch for language too.

Chapter Theme Song: /watch?v=ug2-zj-dU-8&feature=related (Carmina Burana O Fortuna ~Carl Off)

Disclaimer: I don't pretend to own Armored Core, but I wish I did... It'd save me typing out a disclaimer, you know?

* * *

**Chapter Two: The Life of Old Finally Dies**

It was less than four hours after the operation that Anatolia had dubbed "Bitter Obligation", the mission to destroy Reyleonard's Headquarters building Exavil, had ended. In the NEXT hanger that had at one point, been filled with Armored Core units and now stood empty except for one unit and dozens of spare parts from different companies, was Conrad Burns, Anatolia's Lynx and ranked number thirty-nine amongst the forty Lynx. To most people, Conrad seemed cold and indifferent to all the damage he had done since he started piloting the "Howling Moon" for Anatolia. Far from it, the man, in his early twenties, was a professional; He put the mission before everything else. Standing at six foot two, the man was quite impressive in height and was well-muscled to match. With rust-red hair and green eyes, he was quite the unique-looking man. Gazing at his NEXT, the Reyleonard 03-Aaliyah "Howling Moon", he let himself have a slight grin... Reyleonard had had their back broken when he destroyed Exavil, while Akvavit had suffered the same fate at the hands of his Aspina-allied friend and rival, Joshua O'Brian, the rank forty Lynx and his NEXT, "White Glint".

Exavil... The name weighed heavily on Conrad's mind... Not for the loss of the company he had been sponsored by, but for the deaths of over two hundred innocent civilians. He had saved one of them, a six-year old girl with brown hair as she fell, bleeding from the collapsing roof. Fiona Jardenfedlt, his operator was with the girl now, overseeing the operation to try and keep the girl alive from her injuries.

"Damn you Reyleonard... Why did you have to put that girl through hell?"

"Because the CEO was a power-hungry asshole who was obsessed with winning the war and thought he could do whatever he wanted to."

The speaker, a blonde woman walked down the hanger to stand next to Conrad and put an arm round his shoulder, leaning against the bigger man with her slim five foot five build. With her brilliant-blue eyes, Fiona looked up at her companion's green eyes.

"You'll be pleased to know that the girl you rescued is stable. The gunshot wounds to her lung, stomach and liver were all through-and-through hits, so the bullets were not there to be removed."

"That's some good news... What about Joshua? Has there been any news from him yet?"

"Not yet Conrad, I know he's your friend... But, he might have been shot down after leaving Akvavit's HQ..."

"Not Joshua, no way would that happen to him. White Glint is too fast for someone to get him that easy Fiona, and you know it. Aspina tuned those boosters to the max."

"Maybe, but it's been nearly four hours since you took out Reyleonard and about the same since Joshua radioed the Aspina ship that Akvavit fell... They haven't seen his NEXT or had it on radar since that message."

Before Conrad could reply, a doctor came hurrying down the hanger to hold a hurried conversation with the woman.

"What did you say about those bullet wounds?"

"Kojima-laced, and I don't mean from being caught by the Lynx ma'am. The bullets she was hit with must have had a Kojima Particle-laced core."

"You mean that she's got Kojima poisoning?"

"Acute, but contained thus-far. If we remove the infected tissue from liver, stomach and lung, then we would have to graft some cybernetic parts to her lung and stomach to ensure she can live."

"I know it should be her call to make and not mine, but do it. If anyone deserves to live after Exavil, it's her... From what the Howling Moon's recordings show, she was forced to kill her friends and family before being kicked from the roof and shot as she fell."

"Understood ma'am, we'll get to work on the operation now."

"Thanks... Keep me posted, okay doc?"

With a nod, the doctor left, leaving Fiona to turn back to Conrad... The man however, was absorbed in his NEXT. For the purpose of destroying Exavil's pillars that supported the roof, he had equipped the Reyleonard-made 07-Moonlight Laser blade he had taken from the wreckage of Anjou's NEXT, Orleans after he had beaten her fairly in a fight, to the left forearm... Another Reyleonard-made weapon graced the right hand; The 03-Motorcobra machine gun with twelve magazines holding 92 rounds each . The back however, had a pair of Omer-made EC-O300 Laser Cannons with 48 shots each. On the shoulders was the Reyleonard-made 09-Flicker Flash Rockets that had once graced the shoulders of Orleans like Moonlight had graced its arm... In the right hanger, the Global Armaments Europe-made GAEN01-SL-WH Handgun rested like it was in a holster.

With the Akvavit-made INBLUE FCS, Global Armaments America-made GAN01-SS-G Generator, Rosenthal-made CB-Hogire main booster, M.E.L.I.E.S.-made BB103-Scheat Back booster, Rosenthal-made AB-Hogire Side Boosters and the Omer-made KB-Judith Over Booster, the Howling Moon was fast, well-powered and highly agile, if somewhat fragile due to the lighter end of the mid-weight parts the 03-Aaliyah used. Stabilized with a Global Armaments America-made GAN01-SS-CUS1 Large Stabiliser for the core on the upper-left core, a pair of Reyleonard-made 03-Aliya/CLS1 Large Stabilisers on the lower core, one to a side, a Rosenthal-made AM-HOGIRE-OPE01 Large Stabiliser on the left arm, and a Global Armaments America-made GAN01-SS-AS2 Small Stabiliser on the right arm made the unit pull to the rear quicker when the boosters were fired for reverse movement. Colour-wise, the NEXT's name was misleading, it wasn't white or grey, but a lustrous blue with red highlights while the joints and the rest of the body was black. The head though, had a luscious red eye to move on the track. This paint scheme was mottled however, in a forest-typed camouflage pattern in a vague "attempt" at hiding the well-painted unit. The weapons were gunmetal in colour with a more speckled camouflage pattern that was better suited to snow-bound conditions.

The emblem of the NEXT however, made up for what the name lacked. Within a black octagon sat a templar-esque cross that had been rotated to make an "X" shape, while a black moon sat in the centre of it. Standing in front of the moon was a black-bodied wolf holding a blue rapier with a half-basket hilt by the blade in its mouth, and in front of the lot were twisted red thorny vines acting like a barrier to the wolf's feet.

"A beaut of a NEXT... My Howling Moon..."

"Call your NEXT what you will Conrad, but it is still just a weapon."

Leaving the man to his machine, Fiona walked out of the hanger. After a while however, Conrad followed suit and headed towards the medical wing to watch over the little girl whose life he had saved.

The hours past and night drew in, bringing with it peace... Or so the denizens of Anatolia colony believed. Without warning, Early-warning sensors tripped and blazed alarms of attack while the first laser blasts slammed into buildings. From where he had fallen asleep in a chair, Conrad jerked awake. Running for the hanger, he entered the cavernous building as Fiona's voice sounded over the intercom.

"We've confirmed an unidentified craft approaching Anatolia. That's...?! Why's that Armored Core here?! Stay back! Something's not right here!"

As his operator's voice was cut off, Conrad glimpsed the aggressor unit on the view screen... The 00-Aretha was bigger than any other NEXT he had seen before... The malformed left arm was a mess of a huge Hi Laser Cannon and bomb launchers, while the right arm was several large Gatling guns strapped together... But the speed! Nothing should have been able to move like that... The Quick Boost of the unit left a blurry line behind it, a real impossibility for something that bulky...

"Load me up a GAN-01 Sunshine with two 03-Motorcobra machine guns, the 09-Flicker Flash Rockets, and two HLC02-Sirius Hi Laser Cannons! Transfer my boosters, generators and FCS over to the Sunshine! Hurry, we have a few minutes before it's on us!"

Hurriedly, tech crews who had headed to the hanger threw the requested unit together. Thankfully, amongst the many spare parts that Conrad had brought and had gotten painted in his colours was a complete Global Armaments America GAN-01 Sunshine. Due to NEXT units being so modular, the transfer of parts was quick, as was the assembly.

"Conrad Burns in the Howling Moon Heavy, launching now!"

Leaving the hanger in a roar of thrusters, Conrad was confronted by the sight of Anatolia burning in flames that lit up the night sky... But it was the voice of the 00-Aretha's pilot that stunned him...

"Hey. I guess there's little need for words..."

It was Joshua... Joshua O'Brian, his friend and rival... Gritting his teeth, Conrad dived into the fight with everything he had... A heavy impact shook the Howling Moon Heavy, dropping it to a one knee. Once again, Joshua's voice came over the radio after some heavy breathing, believing the unit to be wrecked and Conrad dead...

"I'll be right behind you. You can chew me out on the other side."

However, Conrad wasn't beaten yet... With his armour gauge reading only ten thousand AP, he couldn't afford to take another hit... As Joshua stood over him, Conrad wiped the blood from his forehead and sighted the back-mounted Hi Laser Cannons... Muttering "Sorry Joshua...", he fired and took out the last of the Aretha's armour, wrecking it.

"So...this is the end. *Cough* This is for the best..."

Those were the last words Joshua said as Aretha went offline with a violent explosion... Without warning, a new voice came over the radio as soon as the massive machine's signal faded off the radar.

"Heh... Is that really all? Or maybe... Everyone's exaggerated about you."

The voice belonged to Celo, the ranked six Lynx and the golden boy of Omer. Gritting his teeth as he tried fighting the high-speed Type-Judith frame "Testament", Conrad waited for each lock as they came in and fired the Sirius' into the Omer Lynx over and over until a gleeful laugh from the Lynx signified his end.

"I'm glad that's over..."

"Conrad, are you still alive?!? Answer me!"

Crackling through a mess of static, Fiona's voice sounded panicky and desperate... Flicking the radio to two-way, the red-haired man replied slowly.

"I'm here... Joshua O'Brian... Has been eliminated... The Ranked six Lynx, Celo has also been eliminated..."

"Never mind that right now, are you safe?"

"My unit's critical. Armour's less than a thousand, but I can just about move."

"Stay there, we'll pick you up."

"Roger that Fiona."

An hour ticked by slowly before a carrier VTOL landed by the Howling Moon Heavy, before disgorging a truck that carried the regular Howling Moon on a trailer. Driving over to the stranded NEXT, the tech crew quickly swapped the parts over from the GAN-01 Sunshine back to the 03-Aaliyah. Changing over to the regular Howling Moon, Conrad sighed in relief as he walked up the plane's ramp and into the vehicle's belly. Once inside, he powered down the generator and climbed out of the machine. As he headed for the plane cockpit, Conrad nearly tripped over a gurney in the hallway... It held the little girl, Rose, who's surgery to remove the Kojima contaminated tissue had succeeded.

"She's a real fighter huh? Docs gave her a twenty percent chance of survival for the operation."

Looking sideways at Fiona who had come to stand next to him, Conrad nodded sadly...

"Yeah... I just wish that I..."

"Could have saved more of them? All of them? Don't dwell on it too much Conrad, you'll destroy yourself inside if you do. She survived because of you saving her, so be thankful of that."

"Right... I'm guessing because she's here, we're leaving Anatolia?"

"Yeah... We're going for the Line Ark company and a new life there, away from the other companies that fear you for your skills... I know a guy there, so he can get us in... Maybe, just maybe, we can raise this girl there, help her forget the tragedy that has befallen her and start anew."

"We? You mean both of us? I like the sound of that, Fiona..."

"I thought you would. Now come on, let's get out of here... I'm sure Joshua wouldn't want you to be sad forever, moping and grieving while staring at his final scene..."

Watching the pain and hurt flash through Conrad's eyes, Fiona gently pulled the big man into the cockpit of the plane. After several minutes, the plane lifted off into the sky.

(Recording Interrupted)

Sighing to the camera, the shadowed figure spoke again.

"Fiona and Conrad got their new life for a few years, adopting and raising that little girl as their own. For a time, all was right with the world, the girl learned to pilot the old Aaliyah frame before one day vanishing with it into the night. It broke her adopted parent's hearts to know that the girl they had saved then raised had done that, but Conrad had a new job to do; Protect Line Ark with the new White Glint. Fiona did what she always had for him; become Conrad's operator. Even though he was Collard's number nine ranked Lynx, Conrad never did missions for them... Not for the organisation that was a front for the League of Ruling Companies... The world's power-balance was shifted after the war, companies fell and others joined together to make new ones. In the end, the League had nine member companies; Interior Union, formed by Leonmeccanica joining with M.E.L.E.I.S., The Bernard and Felix Foundation was refloated by Global Armaments America, while Rosenthal, Eqbal, Technocrat, Aldera and Omer Science never changed... And then there was one other group... Formed by the remnants of Akvavit and Global Armaments Europe, was Torus. Nine groups to rule the world, something that was meant to bring peace..."

Stepping into the dim light, the figure shook her head... Revealed to be a teenage girl around sixteen, with long brown hair and soft, blue eyes.

"I know this because the League's history is common knowledge, but about Line Ark's defender? I owe him and Fiona my life. That little girl they saved... Was... It was me. My name is Rose, short for Rosemary. I don't have a last name, not that I remember... Fiona and Conrad never married, so I didn't get either's last name."

Running a hand through her hair, Rose continued.

"That's my early life... After I ran away with Conrad's old Howling Moon, I joined Collard as an independent Mercenary... My career is what I will describe next..."

* * *

End of Chapter Two. Find out what happens to Rose in the next chapter of ACFA: TML.

Please Read and Review. Critique about my writing style is not appreciated, so please don't do it. Pointing out things I could have done better is okay, but please don't be overly critical.


	3. The New Life Starts

Armored Core For Answer: The Mercenary's Legacy

Hey folks, it's me... Back with a new story, and not one on my ideas list too! O-o **Shock horror**...

Okay, here's the usual stuff, theme song and disclaimer and all that... Oh, and watch for language too.

Chapter Theme Song: [url= http://youtube(dot)com/watch?v=PsnYrH3BUP8]All Fired Up ~ Pat Benetar [/url]

Disclaimer: I don't pretend to own Armored Core, but I wish I did... It'd save me typing out a disclaimer, you know?

* * *

**Chapter Three: The New Life Starts**

Sighing in the dark room, Rose continued to speak to the camera.

"As a new Lynx, I couldn't just go somewhere and start a fight. That, would have made me a terrorist... I had to join Collard first, and be officially registered as a mercenary for hire..."

(Recording Resumed)

Sitting against one of the cargo crates on the back of the truck, Rose strummed her most treasured personal possession; A slightly battered-looking acoustic/electric hybrid guitar that Fiona and Conrad, her adopted parents had given her on her fifteenth birthday. As she played several chords and hummed lyrics that hadn't properly formed in her head, the brown-haired sixteen year old looked up at the machine strapped to the trailer... Ten years old, the Howling Moon was a Former Reyleonard 03-Aaliyah frame that had belonged to her adopted father, Conrad Burns. When she had taken the unit from the hanger at Line Ark, the blue-and-red NEXT had been armed with a 03-Motorcobra machine gun in the right hand, a 07-Moonlight laser blade on the left arm, 09-Flicker Flash Rockets attached to the shoulders and two EC-O300 Laser Cannons on the back. However, several nights ago, someone had stolen the laser blade and flash rockets before wrecking one of the laser cannons, her generator and all of her boosters while she slept in the shadows of a cliff. Other than NEXT-sized footprints, there was no way to tell who the culprit was.

After the incident, Rose had been forced to scrap one of the cannons and sell the other, her hangered handgun and her machine gun to buy a 01-Hitman machine gun, a 02-Dragonslayer Laser Blade and two Tresor Plasma Cannons. Thankfully however, she had 03-Aaliyah spares in the form of a generator and boosters. After she had made her purchases and hired a truck for transport to Collard's HQ, she got her unit re-coloured in a dark pink and mid-blue, while the weapons were painted white and grey. The emblem didn't change much, but the sword was lowered from the wolf's mouth to be on top of the vines, the wolf was made smaller and moved more to the left and a polar bear of the same size was put on the right side, thus making the unit's emblem much more unique and "limited" compared to how it looked under Conrad's control.

As the truck pulled up to a stop outside the Collard HQ's main NEXT hanger, Rose put her guitar away and picked up her bag. Jumping off the trailer, she waved the driver to take the NEXT inside the hanger while she went to find the reception and sign up as a Lynx. As she entered the main reception, she nearly bumped into a tall man with long black hair tied into a pony tail.

"Sorry..."

"You'd better be, kid. This isn't a playground, so go find your boyfriend and get out of here."

"..."

Frowning at the man, Rose was about to think of a cutting retort, when a tall and thin man with a vaguely Chinese moustache put a hand on Mr Ponytail's shoulder.

"Let her go my friend. We have business to attend to in Old Peace City."

"Whatever, Sun-Tsung. Let's get out here before she tries batting her eyes at us."

Walking out of the building, the man missed Rose flipping him the bird and calling him an "utter asshole with no respect for the fairer and better sex". Walking over to the reception desk on the left side of the room, the teen pressed the bell to bring a receptionist over.

"How can I help you miss? Are you waiting for your father or brother?"

"Erm, no... I'm here to sign on with Collard as a Lynx."

"..."

The receptionist, a petite lady with dark red hair, looked Rose over, taking in the girl's soft and innocent, if slightly distant, blue eyes and mussy brown hair in a pair of pigtails... Not to mention the girl's tank top, jeans and denim jacket, all of which looked well-slept in, while her feet were covered by a pair of military-grade black boots.

"This isn't a joke, right?"

"Nope. I'm Rosemary, I called ahead a few days ago with my application request. They told me to fill in some forms when I reached the Headquarters."

"Right, I'll go get forms B-10 through 14."

Walking into a back office, the receptionist returned several minutes later with four files.

"If you will answer my questions, I'll fill the details in for you."

"Alright."

"First of all; Full name?"

"Rosemary. I don't have any middle or last names."

"Right..."

Raising an eyebrow as if she didn't believe the teen, the receptionist continued.

"Age and Date of birth?"

"Sixteen... But I don't know the day, I can't remember it... I'm sorry..."

"You can't remember?"

The receptionist put the pen down in shock , her earlier disbelief gone.

"Are you sure you can't?"

"I'm sure... All I remember was a cafeteria and then sirens and soldiers... And... And... Oh my God!"

Collapsing to her knees and clutching her head while her blue eyes stared at the floor in front of her wildly, but without seeing anything, Rose started to relive the memories she had locked away in her head; Her sixth birthday had been on the same day Conrad had attacked Exavil ten years before...

"Oh my God... They... They... "

"Miss? Are you alright?"

With a squeak of shock, the receptionist ducked below her desk as the whole thing shuddered under a violent impact that caused the oak to crack... The thing that had hit it was Rose's left fist, but surprisingly, her hand wasn't even damaged, aside from starting to bruise slightly... Part of the surgery to reconstruct her crushed hand and two broken fingers had involved lacing the bones and joints with a thin coating of a tungsten and titanium alloy to increase the durability of her hand and prevent it from happening again...

"No... I'm not alright..."

Pulling herself to her feet slowly, Rose put her hands on the desk to steady herself... As she tried to distance herself from the memories she had just been overcome by, the teen shook her head.

"I think I remember my birthday now... My sixth birthday was on the same day Reyleonard fell... I was there too, and I was the only civilian survivor... So my date of birth was... Twenty-fifth of August."

"Y... Yes..."

Sitting back on the desk, looking visibly shaken, the Receptionist filled in the date.

"N... Next question... Erm... I'll skip these ones, they're to do with family..."

"Hold on... I have adopted parents, my adopted mother was Fiona Jardenfeldt, while my adopted father was Conrad Burns."

Waiting for the Receptionist to fill that in, Rose waited for the next question.

"Ethnicity?"

"White, British. Before you ask, we went to Canada on a trip for my birthday, me, my biological parents, and four of my friends."

"Ah... Next question, any disabilities or illnesses?"

"Nope, I'm perfectly healthy... Or close to it... I have cybernetic parts over a certain place in my right lung and on my stomach when I was shot with kojima particle-laced bullets and had to have the poisoned tissue removed... But other than that, I'm healthy and Kojima poisoning-free."

"Right... That was the last question for the first form... The Second form is about your NEXT and primary client."

"Right."

"NEXT frame?"

"A 03-Aaliyah, fitted with all stock internal parts."

"What armaments and parts are equipped?"

"01-Hitman Machine gun in the right hand, 02-Dragonslayer Laser Blade on the left forearm, two Tresor Plasma Cannons on the back, INBLUE FCS, then stock 03-Aaliyah generator and boosters."

"Right... Unit name?"

"Limited Moon."

"Last question; Unit colourings, including weapon colouring, and the emblem, if any?"

"Dark pink and mid-blue with a red eye. White and grey weapons, and I have a photo of the emblem with me."

Pulling out a photograph of her unit's emblem, Rose placed it on top of the file.

"Will that be sufficient?"

"Erm, yes..."

Closing that file and setting it aside, the receptionist opened the third file.

"This one is about your schooling, which I assume is incomplete?"

"Nah, I finished my final year before I left to come here... I was so smart that they puched me ahead a few years."

"Okay, what subjects did you take?"

"English, maths, science, German, art, music and design and technology: resistant materials."

"Where did you attend school, and what dates?"

"Granda local high school, from five years ago until summer just gone."

"Where is this school?"

"I'd rather not say."

"Understood. Any further education?"

"An eight-month crash-course in piloting NEXTs, after my AMS aptitude was discovered, but other than that, none."

"Okay... This final folder is about your interests. It's for you to fill in yourself, okay?"

"Right."

Accepting that folder and sitting down with it, Rose started to fill it in. A few minutes later, the girl handed it back over.

"Done."

"Alright, we'll assign you an operator shortly. If you would like to get your NEXT stowed away in the mean time, we can assign you a hanger slot."

"Alright."

After being assigned a space in the hanger, Rose returned there, to find the driver waiting outside the truck.

"Thanks, chief. I can get my NEXT stowed from here... Say hello to Jane and the kids for me."

"Not a problem Rose, you take care of yourself out here. And don't worry about the fee, this one's pro bono for how you helped us by driving away that band of rogue MT's."

"Thanks, I'm glad I could help you out."

Waving to the man as he drove away after she had stowed her NEXT in the hangar space she had been allotted, Rose turned round to face a lovely middle-aged Japanese woman.

"Rosemary I take it?"

"Yes, that's me..."

"I'm Kasumi Sumika, but I go by "Serene Haze" around here nowadays. I'm the operator assigned to you by Collard."

"It's nice to meet you Miss Haze, and please, call me Rose..."

"Alright, then you may call me Serene."

As the pair started chatting and getting to know a little bit about each other, Kasumi/Serene showed Rose around the facility, stopping at the room assigned to the girl and letting her drop off her back and guitar, before continuing the tour to stop at the briefing room.

"Are you ready for your first mission, or do you want to wait until tomorrow?"

"I'll go for it now."

"I thought you'd say that... You seem distant, but always eager."

Opening the mission screen in Rose's newly set up Collard account, Kasumi/Serene selected the only mission available to the girl; the mission "Attack on Line Ark".

After the briefing played out, Rose sat there, stony-faced.

"Are you okay Rose?"

"No... Line Ark was my home after the whole destruction of Reyleonard thing and fall of Anatolia incident..."

"I see..."

"I won't kill them. I'll only destroy the machines... I'm not going to kill the pilots, some of them are my friends."

There was no doubt to anyone looking at the girl at that moment, that she meant every single word of it...

* * *

End of Chapter Three. Find out what happens to Rose on her first mission in the next chapter of ACFA: TML.

Please Read and Review. Critique about my writing style is not appreciated, so please don't do it. Pointing out things I could have done better is okay, but please don't be overly critical.


	4. Paydirt Comes With A Price

Armored Core For Answer: The Mercenary's Legacy

Hey folks, it's me... Back with a new story, and not one on my ideas list too! O-o **Shock horror**...

Okay, here's the usual stuff, theme song and disclaimer and all that... Oh, and watch for language too.

Chapter Theme Song: /watch?v=jIWGZLqcOnA Headstrong ~ Trapt

Disclaimer: I don't pretend to own Armored Core, but I wish I did... It'd save me typing out a disclaimer, you know?

* * *

**Chapter Four: Paydirt comes with a price**

"Let me get this straight, Rose... You _refuse_ to kill the pilots of Line Ark's MT's and NORMAL's, because some of the pilots are your friends?"

"Yes. I will **not** kill my friends needlessly... Not again..."

"Very well, but your decision may cost you your life."

"I'm already the walking dead; the only choice is whether or not I crawl to my grave."

"That's grim for someone so young."

"I lost everything to Reyleonard, so I have reason to be."

Turning on her heel and leaving the briefing room, Rose headed for the NEXT hanger and her Armored Core inside. Pausing in the ready-room long enough to change into a close-fitting flight suit, take her hair out of the two pig tails and grab a helmet, the teen boarded her NEXT, Limited Moon.

"Testing Generator's start-up procedure, the energy output and the Kojima Particle output. Confirmed. Testing FCS lock-on and tracking ability. Check. Testing weapons connections. Check. Limbs and boosters reading full capacity. All systems green."

Walking the ten metre-tall machine out of the hanger, Rose stopped on a section of ground marred by several large carbon-scorched marks. As she was positioning herself in the direction of Line ark, her radio crackled with Serene Haze's voice.

"Radio connection is green here, so you're good to go. Mission Zone is a few hours of flight-time away, if you use Over Boost often, you should get there in about two hours counting time for recharging Primal Armour and energy."

"Roger."

Pulling the helmet on properly and lowering the visor, Rose sighed to herself...

"Rosemary, lifting off in Limited Moon!"

As she said it, Rose kicked the boosters into gear and went air-born. As she cleared Collard's outer walls, she lowered herself to the ground and "skated" along with her boosters to propel her down the ground as the main energy gauge filled back up. As soon as it was full, she flicked open a trigger cover, pressed the trigger inside down and shoved the lever in her hand forwards to the stop. Immediately, portions of the NEXT's back opened up to reveal the Overed Booster in the back that then kicked in and fired up, propelling the relatively light machine at speeds exceeding thirteen hundred kilometres an hour for several seconds before the energy gauge and Primal Armour were completely depleted. Pulling the lever back to its original position and waiting until the gauges read full again, she repeated the cycle until she reached the outskirts of the maritime city of Line Ark.

Skating down the top road, which was usually reserved for civilians, the teen jumped her NEXT down to the road to the left below her. Thanks to the triangular shape of Line Ark's main structure, finding landing spots was easy. The road she was on now, was usually reserved for military vehicles but was often used by Muscle Tracers and NORMALs, and ran along the outer edges of the triangle-shaped structure. Jumping down again, Rose halted on one of the platforms below and to the right of the road she had just left, something that the defence forces would often use to position an MT on if the colony got attacked.

"Rose here, I've reached the target point."

"Roger. Mission starting in twenty seconds."

As the seconds ticked off and Line Ark Muscle Tracer units started to array themselves on the platforms and military-use road, Rose opened a channel on her radio on the common military frequency that Line Ark used for the MT's and NORMALs.

"Attention Line Ark forces. If you do not abandon your units and let them be destroyed, I will kill you in them. I would rather not kill any of you, but I will not hesitate to do so. This is your only warning and it is not a joke."

"Mission start, Rose!"

"Limited Moon, commencing mission."

Disengaging the safety on her machine gun, Rose engaged her boosters and went for the first four Muscle Tracers in her path. The pilots hadn't headed her warning and stayed in the units, firing the front-mounted rifles at her. Jumping from side to side in mid-air with her side boosters as she closed in on the quartet, Rose dropped from the air to the platform and engaged the Dragonslayer laser blade on her left forearm. As soon as the MT pilot saw the blade engage, he hit the ejection unit, just in time as the blade passed through the body and cockpit of his Muscle Tracer.

"One down."

A quick boost to one side and a full-on stab at a second MT totalled it, with the pilot barely escaping at the last second. The third and fourth machines didn't bother with waiting for the NEXT to target them and ejected before the blade carved them up in two strokes, leaving the Limited Moon as the only unit on the platform.

"Four down."

Crossing to a platform further to the right as well as in front of her, Rose laid into the second quartet of MT units. Thankfully for her conscience, the pilots ejected before her laser blade struck them. Her path of machine-destruction continued on two other platforms before she rose to the road above.

"Last four Muscle Tracer units located."

"A League NEXT?!?"

Apparently, these four had no idea that the dark pink and mid-blue aggressor was a Collard mercenary, despite the ease of which the other four groups of MT's had been destroyed... The first two fell, pilotless, to the Dragonslayer before the others could turn to target the unit. Several rifle rounds streaked to the Former-Reyleonard machine before deforming on an invisible bubble and then denting the armour below.

"Primal Armour?"

The third went down before he could fire another shot, his surprise not quite out-weighing his survival instinct, so his ejection system fired before the deadly beam of energy cut the Muscle Tracer in half at the waist.

"Our standard weapons are useless! Where the hell are our NORMAL's?!?"

And that made twenty MT's... The laser blade obliterated the cockpit with a well-placed thrust mere heartbeats after the pilot vacated the unit...

"Hmmm... That wasn't so hard..."

"Confirmed, more half the targets are eliminated Rose. Keep at it."

"Roger. Resuming mission."

Skating down the military-use road with her boosters, Rose checked her radar for the targets left...

"Hmmm... NORMALs left? Right... Numbers... Nine?"

Fortunately, the first trio of the stocky GA America-made NORMALs were devoid of pilots, having ejected as the last of the MT's fell... Easy meat for the Laser blade... Three strokes meant three kills there. A warning and blue-purple blips on the radar showed incoming missiles from the left road, and a trio of NORMALs firing those missiles and the bazookas they carried in their right hands.

"Hmmm... Small-fry who are interrupting my mission..."

Leaping into the air and using precise applications of quick boost and regular boost, Rose cleared the gauntlet of missiles and bazooka shells with the minimum of damage. The hits were there, but the damage was insignificant in the face of her Primal Armour's capacity to reduce the damage dealt. As the dark-pink-and-mid-blue unit hit the concrete, the closest NORMAL pilot realised his folly and ejected a mere instant before the glowing beam sliced cleanly through the unit.

"Shit! Can nothing stop this thing?!?"

"I dunno! If only White Glint was here!"

The two pilots didn't have a chance to continue their wild and relatively random yellings, as they too ejected before Rose's Armored Core cut them down with almost casual ease.

"That leaves... Three more enemies... On the other road again..."

"I guess it's pointless me telling you that reinforcements were on their way if you've already tracked them."

"... Yes... Yes it is..."

Crossing back over to the right-side road, Rose sighed...

"I do so hope these people are smart enough to eject before I end up killing them..."

Thankfully, the impact of a ten-metre tall Armored Core hitting the road was not un-noticed by the General Purpose Armored Core units, as known to all else as "NORMAL's"... The rear two quickly ejected as their threat-detection systems picked up on the Limited Moon, before the stocky units were bisected from head to waist. The lead unit turned and parried the swing of the laser blade with the bazooka.

"Tch, you're good..."

"And so are you... Rose..."

"Dakana?!? Is... Is that you in there?"

"Yes... It's me... Now, tell me something my friend... Why are you attacking your home? Why did you run away with a stolen NEXT?"

"..."

Despite her friend not being able to see her face, Rose looked down and away, unable to keep her eyes on the video screens...

"I... I wanted to make something of myself... Not in a NORMAL or an MT, but in a NEXT... And this? This is just a mission... I was assigned this as my first mission, so it's nothing personal Dakana... But please... Eject... Don't make me kill you! I haven't killed any of the other defenders, and I don't want to kill my best friend!"

Pulling the laser blade back from the bazooka as the gun finally succumbed to the laser beam, Rose slashed off the shoulder-mounted missile pod, the NORMAL's last remaining projectile weapon, before deactivating the blade.

"I'll only ask you one more Dakana... Eject now, so I don't kill my friend... Not again at least..."

"Again?"

"The day Reyleonard fell... It was my sixth birthday, and during the incident, Anatolia's Lynx attacked..."

"You mean Mr Burns?"

"Yeah... In the attack, Reyleonard decided to use hostages from the civilian visitors... They broke my fingers and crushed my hand when they forced the gun into my grip... They made me kill my friends and my parents, before they shot me... So please, don't make me have to kill a friend again!"

"..."

Inside the NORMAL, Dakana yanked on the ejection lever... Though, nothing happened...

"Can't... System isn't firing..."

"Pop the hatch and run... I'll let you get far enough away, so that you don't get caught in the blast..."

Stepping back from the NORMAL as the cockpit hatch opened, and the helmeted figure of Dakana climbed out, Rose noticed for the first time in a week about how tall and slim, but well-built he was... As soon as she was sure that her friend was out of range, Rose raised her machine gun... Instead of wasting bullets and pulling the trigger, Rose slammed the blade-like underside of the weapon down onto the vacant NORMAL's head and then through the open cockpit and out of the other side, wrecking the unit entirely. Boosting into the air as the unit below exploded, the girl let out a sign of relief.

"All units destroyed."

"Confirmed, all enemy forces destroyed. Return to base."

"Roger that, returning now."

Returning to the top of Line Ark's structure, Rose sighed and raised her helmet's visor as she skated along the road back in the direction of Collard HQ. As she prepared to hit the Over Boost, Rose noticed an incoming blip on her radar that was moving at ultra-high speeds.

"Serene, I have a high-speed blip on my radar. Coming in from behind, can you get an ID on it?"

"One moment... Shit! The ID code's scrambled! There's only one Lynx who'd be there with a scrambled number; White Glint's pilot! Get out of there!"

"Roger that!"

Hitting her own Over Booster, Rose watched the rapidly decreasing distance slow to a not-so rapidly-decreasing distance as the edge of Line Ark's territory came into sight.

"Just a few more seconds... Come on... Come on... Clear!"

Clearing the edge of Line Ark's territorial borders, Rose Risked a look behind her... The blue-white flames of the White Glint's Over Boost were defiantly getting larger and larger in the rear camera.

"I just need three more minutes, then I'm home free... Please, dad... Just hold off the triggers for three minutes..."

Those three minutes were fraught with terror and lasted longer than Rose could remember, what with long-distance rifle shots hitting the ground around her, and missiles exploding overhead as their flight times were reached...

"Come on... Come on... Come on... SAFE!"

Hitting the edge of the bridge, Rose skated along the dusty ground, casting up a sand-cloud that masked her location...

"That... Was close..."

Repeating her outwards flight, Rose returned to Collard HQ. Setting the NEXT down in the hanger, the girl powered the unit down and returned to the ready room.

"I'm glad that's over..."

"So, still want to be a mercenary, even after you narrowly escaped White Glint?"

Standing in the doorway, Serene Haze ran a hand through her ebony-black hair as she watched the sixteen year-old remove her helmet and wipe the sweat from her forehead.

"Yeah... I chose my path, Serene... So I'll keep following it."

"Good... Because your "I won't kill them" stunt cost you precious time that could have had you out of Line Ark before White Glint showed up."

"So? I got out of there alive, and accomplished the mission didn't I? What's there to complain about?"

Watching her operator shake her head and leave the room, Rose sighed and changed into a light tank top and shorts.

"Hmm... I think I need a shower..."

* * *

End of Chapter Four. Find out what happens to Rose's shower exploits in the next chapter of ACFA: TML. (Fanservice not a guarantee I'm afraid...)

Please Read and Review. Critique about my writing style is not appreciated, so please don't do it. Pointing out things I could have done better is okay, but please don't be overly critical.


	5. The Aftermath Of The First Day

A/N: The usual disclaimer stuffs; I don't own Armored Core, the game characters, any music I use in the fanfiction, etc. Only my OC (duh) Rose, the emblem I use, and the NEXT designs I use.

Chapter Theme Song: www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=0uMDyd1imjw ~ Centrefold - J Geils Band

Chapter Name: Aftermath of the First Day; A Steamy Meeting in the Bath?

Steam filled the woman's comunal bath/shower room as Rose entered with a plain cream-coloured towel wrapped around her body, the room already having a good eight women occupying the giant geothermally heated bath in the centre of the room, or one of the many shower cubicals along the side walls. As the brown-haired girl crossed the room's threshhold from the changing room behind her, she could hear the hubub of conversation die out as everyone looked over at her. Noting that Serene Haze, her operator, was not amongst the gathered women, Rose gulped nervously.

_I hope they don't haze me..._

"You new, girl?"

The voice snapped Rose from her thoughts with a jolt. Blushing, she looked self-consciously at her bare feet. Nodding slowly, Rose Spoke.

"Y... Yes, I'm Rosemary, an Independant mercenary. I, erm, only recently joined Collard... Erm, just this lunchtime, I mean..."

"Woah there missy, we don't need your lifestory here."

One of the women, the one with reddy-copper hair, held up a hand to stop the embarressed teenager, who was now blushing like no tomorrow.

"Here, stop standing there like a prize idiot, and come join us in the bath. The water's lovely."

"T... Thank you..."

Joining the four women in the giant bath and leaving her towel at the side of the tub as she did so, Rose gave the four women another quick glance over.

"I'm Wynne. Wynne D. Fanchon of Interior, and these ladies are Stilleto and Ay-Pool, also of Interior, and Lilium Wolcott of BFF."

Shaking hands with each of the four, Rose couldn't help but notice that even Lilium, who couldn't be more than two years older than herself, had much bigger breasts than her.

"Caught you looking, honey."

The speaker, Raven-haired Ay-Pool, grinned at the heavilly blushing Rose.

"So, how big are yours, Rosemary?"

Before the majorly embarressed Rose could answer, someone put their arms around her from behind, and gave the teen's breasts a squeeze, which illicted a gasp from the girl and only made her blush even more.

"Don't hog the new girl. Wynne... Hmm... A 30C, if I'm feeling right..."

By then, Rose was hoping that the water would just swallow her, such was her embarressment. Fortunetly, Wynne of the Reddy-copper hair picked then to interveen with her reply.

"I'm not hogging Collard's newest Lynx, Smily, now stop gropping Rosemary."

"I thought I said for you to only call me that when I'm in my NEXT, besides I'm saying hello to the new girl."

Relinquishing her hold on Rose's chest, the woman slipped into the bath next to the teen.

"May Greenfield, I work for GA America. Wynne and the others call me "Smiley" because of my NEXT's Emblem."

Shaking brown-haired May's hand, Rose nodded, still rather embarresed as to how easilly May had guessed her chest size.

"Don't talk much do you Rosemary? That's alright, better than talking unnessercarily I suppose.

"...Rose..."

"Hm? What was that? You're speaking really quietly there, Rosemary."

"I prefere being called "Rose" over my full name, it's less of a mouthfull."

"Okay, "Rose" it is then. You have a particular history or reason for being an Independant? It's less common amongst us ladies than the guys. Only one who's close is Mrs. Theresia over there, and she's former GAE."

With a wave of her hand, May indecated a woman with Crimson hair who was keeping herself away from the other women, even as the others came over to introduce themselves and hear Rose's tale of her past. Now aquainted with Risala of Omer and Shamir RaviRavi, Rose took a deep breath and began her tale of herself.

"I was born in England sixteen years ago, but it wasn't interesting at that point... Not until the week of my sixth Birthday, when my parents took me and three of my friends to Canada on a trip. On the day of my birthday itself, I lost everything to do with my old life... We were at Exavil on a guided tour with at least two hundred other people. Little did anyone know, that Anatolia's mercenary was on his way to destroy Reyleonard's HQ that same day. Declaring a state of emergency, the company's President took all the civillians in the building hostage as leverage, while several of the guards took me, my family, and my friends to one of the sub-roofs... And... And forced me to kill everyone else, one per pillar that was destroyed, breaking my left hand in the process..."

Holding back tears from the pain of the memories she had turned away from for ten years, Rose did seem unaware of the horrified looks of the women, for even Mrs. Theresia had joined the little group in the bath to listen to the teen's tale. Staring into the water for a moment, Rose continued to tell her story...

"When the last pillar fell, the guard who had broken my hand while forcing me to fire his pistol kicked me from the roof and shot me three times with kojima particle-laced bullets as I fell... Even as the entire building started to collapse. As I fell, Anatolia's mercenary caught me and staunched the bullet injuries with triage, saving my life. Taking me back to Anatolia, I underwent surgury to remove the contaminated tissue from my right lung, my stomach and my kidney, and to reconstruct my hand... Although, Anatolia was destroyed that night... Anatolia's mercenary and his operator took me in and they moved over to Line Ark, where I grew up and schooled. After my AMS Aptitude was descovered, I learned to pilot the old 03-Aaliyah that had saved me. And then a week ago, I left Line Ark to join Collard."

Shaking her head, Rose finished her story in a rather off-handed fashion.

"The rest is pretty simple and borign really, I arrived and registered here earlier today and went right onto my first mission... I didn'yt like it too much, having to attack Line Ark... But I warned the MT and NORMAL pilots to bail out before I attacked... I'm kinda glad they listened to me, so no-one died... Though, White Glint returned during my evac, hitting me for six with missiles and very lucky rifle hits as I got out of Line Ark terratory. The rest, you all know... Now, any questions?"

"Why'd it take you a week to get here from Line Ark originally, but only a few hours in the mission?"

The questioner, cyan-haired Stilleto, made sure her question was delivered, not only in her typical "what-ever" style, but also had as much sarcasm and sarky attitude as was humanly possible to add to her voice."

"That? Ah, yes... I took the more "scenic" land route to get here, without boosters too, since five days ago, my NEXT got whacked. I had to seel weapons and other partsto refit it with stock parts and replace the broken or stolen parts. I also got a truck-lift for the last three days after helping some people drive off some bandits with stolen MT's. Meanwhile, I took the more direct land-and-water route with liberal useage of boosters and overboosters to get me to and from Line Ark quicker."

Getting over her embarressment, now that she was more comfortable with the other women, the teen took another question.

"Do you have any hobbies, Rose? I'd like to know more about you."

This time, it was Lillium, and her platinum-blonde hair to ask the question.

"My hobbies huh? Well... I like reading manga, both shounen and shoujo, drawing, photography, and music... Especially Rock, Metal, Punk, Folk-Punk, Country, and Alternative. I can play lead, rhythem, and bass guitar for most of the songs I like, and I'm no slouch at singing them either."

"So that was you I heard while I was out walking earlier then, huh? You're definitly pretty damn good, Rose."

Grinning at the teen, May nodded a few times. The older woman had taken a real shine to the younger girl, mostly there was little about Rose that she could dislike. A polite cough made everyone jump, to varying degrees. Serene Haze had joined them without anyone noticing, so focused on Rose and her Q&A session that they were.

"S...Serene?"

"You were expecting someone else?"

Chuckling as she ran a hand through her charcoal-black hair, Kasumi Sumika, aka Serene Haze, shook her head.

"Seriously though, what kind of drawings do you do? I'm curious now..."

"Anything really; concept sketches, manga-style art, realism, doodles, etc... My favourite drawing is of a pair of entwined roses that I drew and coloured one day while I was bored. Boredom seems to be the best motivator for creativity for me..."

"Oh? You'll have to show it later, it sounds really good."

No sooner had Kasumi finished speaking, than the other women chimed in with their own "show me too" cries to get Rose to show her drawing off.

"S... Sure, I'll show it to everyone when we're done in the bath... I'd just have to get my sketch folder from my quarters first though..."

"Oh? Which room is yours Rose? All the women's rooms are paired, in an attempt to save on space and money, I guess."

"Erm... 205, I think... Why? Who's my room paired with?"

"That, would be me darlin'. Looks like there'll be great night-time fun ahead."

Grnning as she spoke, May put her arm around Rose's shoulder, causing the teen to start blushing again. It would be refreshing to have someone to chat to at night, especially someone as sweet as Rose, though there was the girl's habit of blushing a lot... Probably just nerves at meeting so many new people at the same time...

"Rose, before I forget, your payment has already arrived in the account that Collard has set up for you, and you now have access to Order Matches, essentially an arena where you can fight whoever is ranked directly above you to try and raise your collard ranking."

"I... See... Thanks for telling me, Serene... Now, I have a goal; Make it to Number One! I'll be a rising star and claim the top spot, just you see if I don't!"

Embarressment, blush, and the fact that she was totally naked completely forgotten, Rose lept to her feet with one hand in the air as if pointign to the sky as she made her declaration. An awe-worthy momentm that was spoiled when aquamarine-haired Risala gave a wolf-whistle that brought the teen back to her senses, and made her sit back down with amazing alacrity.

"Nice. I wasn't expecting to see everything, but you exceeded my expectations there, Rose."

Luckily for Rose, Shamir came to her defence.

"Now, now Risala, I doubt that that was Rose's intention with that bold declaration, nice as the view was, I think she forgot were were all in the bath for a moment."

Giving the teen a wink as she tossed her scarlet hair over her shoulder, the Algebra Lynx stood up and retrieved her towel.

"I don't know about you all, but I'm hungry. Who else wants to beat the guys to dinner?"

At Shamir's words, Rose's stomach gave a loud and unlady-like growl, much to her further embarressment...

"I'll take that as a "yes" from you, Rose shall I?"

Blushing again, Rose nodded and stood up once again before retrieving her towel and making her way back to the changing room. Swiftly, she and Shamir were joined by the others as they dried themselves off and changed back into dresses, t-shirts or tanktops and shorts, trousers, or skirts, before putting their hair back into their preferred styles. With her hair back in a high ponytail, albeit intentionally off-centre, Rose hurried back to her room to get her sketch pad. As she turned a blind corner, the teen ran right into someone headed the opposite way.

"Oomph! I'm sorry!"

"You should be, and you should watch where you're going!"

As Rose and the other person looked up at who they had bumped into, their eyes widened in shock as they both pointed at each other and shouted the same thing simultainiously...

"YOU!"

Standing back up and brushing themselves off, the pair looked daggers at each other with the ultimate in "if looks could kill" glares.

"Looks like Collard's entries standard must really have been slipping if they're letting flat-chested brats like you into the organisation. Which poor company hired your unattractive ass? I want to sent them my condolences."

"Funny, I could say the same thing about sexist bastards with egos larger than some nations."

Pushing past the sneering man, Rose looked over her shoulder at him.

"And for your information Mister Ponytail, _I_ hired me. I work for me, myself and I, alone.

Turning the corner after sticking her tongue out and flipping Mr. Ponytail the bird, Rose entered the women's barracks and made her way to her room to retrieve her sketch pad. That done, she headed for the cafateria and the other women again. After queing up for a moment and getting some lasange and salad, the brown-haired teen sat between pig-tailed May and short-haired Wynne.

"Thought you'd got lost for a moment there, darlin'."

"Me? Nah, I have a good memory May... I got accosted by Mr. Ponytail over there, who is looking daggers at me right now."

Pointing over her shoulder with her fork at the man in question, Rose recounted her run-in with Mr. Pony tail. Though, Rose did raise an eyebrown when Lilium started laughing.

"Alright, I'll bite, what's so funny Lilium?"

"You definatly gave Otsdarva a good chewing out, Rose. No-one's ever spoken to him like that or flipped him the bird because he's the rank one Lynx."

"If I'd known that earlier, I probably would have kicked him in the nuts too, the sexist bastard. Bet no-one's ever done that to him before either!"

Joining in the merriment of her new-found friends, Rose flicked through her sketch pad to get to her rose drawing. Passing it around the table, the teen watched the reactions of her drawing. The first to speak, predicatably, was May.

"That's amazin' Rose! You should totally get that done as a tattoo, it's look really great on you."

The others were quick to add their own agreements to May's words and were in agreement of having one rose blossom in blue, and the other in red.

"R... Really? But... Don't I need a parent or legal guardian's consent first because I'm under eighteen?"

Surprisingly, it was Kasumi who gave the solution first.

"One of the other operators here runs a tattooing business as a side-job, he's quite the proffesional at it too. I can get him to do it for you as a favour for me, no questions asked too."

"Really, Serene?"

"Yup, he owes me a few favours, so it's no real hastle or bother to arrange it."

After that, the conversations turned to mundane, random things like favourite colours, or animals, etc. After dinner, the ten women crowed into Rose's room to listen to her play her guitar, even as the weather outside began to whip into a big storm. Tuning the instrument for a moment, Rose opened up with a fast, powerfull, and heavy number; "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)", one of her favourite classic instrumental-only tracks. After she finished that one, she went into song after song, playing and singing around twenty in all; "Mirror Mirror", "England My Home", "Re-education (Through Labour)", "What You Know", "Into The Storm", "Blow Me Away", "Paranoid", "Alive", "The Ballard of Robbie Jones", "Pour Some Suger On Me", "How You Remind Me", "The Boatman", "Price To Pay", "Bye Bye Beautiful", "Montségur", "Outside", "Dance With The Devil", "Mary-Lou", and "Shadows Of The Night". Though, for any intro, outro, or solo she didn't have an instrument for, she improvised, naturally.

"That was... Bloody amazing Rose, honey!"

Beating May to the punch, Ay-Pool shook her head in amazement. It was hard to believe that Rose was just sixteen, when she was that good and without missing a note or tripping over her words.

"Thanks, I used to enter talent contests at school with my singing, and I'd win too."

Soon afterwards, everyone started to drift away to their beds for various reasons. As the night wore on, and the storm outside got worse, May in particular was having a good dream; Rose was asking her is she could sleep with the GA Lynx that night... When a knock on the dividing door roused her.

"May?"

Rose pulled the diviving door open , showing her to be in pastal-pink pajamas, with a pillow held to her chest with one arm and holding a teddy bear in her other hand.

"What is it, darlin'?"

"Can I... Can I sleep with you tonight please? I... I don't want to sleep alone in this storm, I get nightmares when I do..."

"Sure, darlin'. By all means, you're more than welcome in my bed."

Sliding over slightly to make room for the teen, May cuddled Rose gently as the younger girl started to drift off to sleep.

A/N: Well, that was... Interesting for me... I don't have much skill in writing fanservice (hence why it took me so long to type this chapter), so this was a new experience for me. Revalations as to Mr. Ponytail being Otsdarva was fun to plan, though I dropped the bobshell earlier than I originally planned to. Oh well. Before you ask, yes, Rose was playing actual songs. I don't own them, but I like them. Also, as the author, I can get away with any and every instance of unusual hair colour, thanks to artistic/creative liscene and the fact we don't know what any of the pilots look like. I wonder though... Will there be any rounds of "LOL!" for my Crowning Moment Of Funny in the bath? Will I get a round of "D'awww"'s for my Crowning Moment Of Heartwarming for the last scene with May and Rose? We shall have to wait and see... As to May being Straight, Bi, or Lesbian? Well, wait and see. Please, as ever, Read and Review, though please not critiquing my writing style.


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